Nail package



C. T. BECHT Nov. 18, 1969 NAIL PACKAGE Original Filed April 8,

INVENTORFS CARL T550;

United States Patent 9 3,478,872 NAIL PACKAGE Carl T. Becht, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignor to Senco Products, Incorporated, Cincinnati, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Continuation of application Ser. No. 541,177, Apr. 8,

1966. This application Oct. 3, 1967, Ser. No. 672,630

Int. Cl. B65d 83/02, 71/00 U.S. Cl. 20656 5 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Nail package including a plurality of nails arranged in side-by-side relation with their shanks in substantially parallel planes and with points of adjacent nails extending in opposite directions and including flexible, extensible means secured to the shank of each of the nails.

Related application This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 541,177, filed Apr. 8, 1966, now abandoned.

Background of the invention The conventional nail driving machine includes a drive track, a driver reciprocable in the drive track, and a feeding arrangement adapted to successively place a plurality of fasteners in the drive track, in a position to be driven by the driver. In the case of the small nail or tack driving machines, the feeding mechanism may include a bin or hopper which receives a plurality of nails, means disposed at one end of the hopper for removing the nails or tacks one at a time in the proper orientation, and means for feeding the nails into the drive track. Such arrangements, because of their tendency to jam, are not fully satisfactory even when used with very small nails and tacks; they are of no value whatever in connection with the feeding of large, heavy nails.

Other feeding arrangements of the prior art are arranged to utilize a supply of properly oriented nails in the form of pre-packaged assembly. By way of example, United States Patent 2,940,081, in the name of A. G. Juilfs and entitled Cohered, Full Headed Nail, discloses an arrangement wherein a plurality of nails with a specially formed head may be secured together in strip form. According to the teachings of this patent, the shanks of adjacent nails are in substantially contacting relationship, whereby more nails may be joined in a strip of a given length. Also according to this patent, the heads of the nails successively overlap each other in the same direction, so that if the shanks of the nails are vertical, the line defined by the points of the nails will be extending upward at an angle of approximately 30. This arrangement presents certain difficulties in the construction of a tool and magazine.

United States Patent 3,083,369 in the name of William J. Peterson, and entitled Nail Assembly teaches a prepackaged nail assembly wherein a plurality of nails are arranged in side-by-side relation with their points adjacent each other. These nails are secured together by a plurality of spaced apart wires extending transversely of and bonded to the shank of each of the nails. A plurality of nails thus secured to the wires may then be rolled into a package and utilized in a nail driving machine.

In considering the above described nail assembly, it will be apparent that in order to permit each nail to be moved axially in the direction of its point without interference from adjacent nails, the shanks of adjacent nails must be spaced apart by a distance greater than the diameter of any given nail head. This very substantial spacing between adjacent nails requires that a roll of ice nails in accordance with the teachings of this reference be {elatively open and exteremely bulky.

Keeping the foregoing comments in mind, it is a principal object of this invention to provide a nail package for use with nail driving machines wherein the individual nails are more closely spaced than has heretofore been possible. This of course permits the utilization of a smaller magazine or container for a given number of nails, or permits a far larger number of nails to be placed in a magazine of a given size.

A very important object of this invention is the provisjpn of an arrangement wherein the shanks of individual nails are held closely together while in the container, and yet permits the nails to be separated during the feeding process by a distance suflicient to permit axial driving of each nail without interference from adjacent nails.

Description of the drawings FIGURE 1 is a perspective view showing one embodimept of the invention, the two nails at the right hand end of the roll having been reoriented from the packaged position into the driving position;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevational view of the embodiment shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the embodiment shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary view of the nails from the above embodiment as reoriented into a plane normal to the nails shown in FIGURE 3 for driving;

FIGURE 5 is a plan view of another embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary view of the nails from the above embodiment as reoriented into a plane normal to the nails shown in FIGURE 5 for driving.

Summary Briefly considered, this invention contemplates a nail package for use with a nail driving machine including a plurality of nails arranged in side-by-side relation with their shanks lying in substantially parallel planes, points of adjacent nails extending in opposite directions, and extensible flexible means extending transversely of and secured to the shank of each of the nails, whereby each of the nails is sequentially movable from an initial package position wherein its shank is immediately adjacent the succeeding nail to a driving position wherein its shank is spaced apart a sufficient distance to permit axial driving of the nail without interference from the head of the succeeding nail.

It will be apparent to the skilled worker in the art that this constitutes a significant departure from conventional practices. This nail package is adapted to be used in connection with a feeding arrangement, wherein the nail package as outlined above are fed in a horizontal plane; means (not forming a part of this invention) will then be provided whereby alternate nails are tipped in opposite directions, whereby all the nails from the nail package are sequentially oriented into a vertical position with the point extending downwardly.

Description of the preferred embodiment As seen in FIGURES l, 2, and 3, the nail package comprises a plurality of nails idi-cated at 10, each of the nails having a head 12 and a point 14. It will be apparent that the nails in the package are all arranged with their shanks substantially parallel to one another, and with alternate points extending in opposite directions.

In the embodiment of FIGURES 1-3, the nails are secured in this side-by-side, parallel relationship by means of the flexible, frangible wire 16. This wire will be secured as by welding or the like to the shank of each nail.

It will be recalled that a very important object of this invention is to provide a nail package in which the shanks of the nails will be closely adjacent one another while in the package, and yet permit adjacent nails to be separated by a distance sufficient to permit axial driving of each nail without'interference from adjacent nails. To this end, the length of wire 16 between for example the points 18 and 20 at which the wire is secured to adjacent nails will be substantially greater than the distance between adjacent nails. It will also be noted that in this arrangement the wire 16 is preferably secured to opposite sides of the shanks of adjacent nails; but it will be understood that it could also be secured to the same side of the shanks of adjacent nails.

During the feeding and driving process, alternate nails will be tipped in opposite directions, so as to provide an array of nails in side-by-side relation with their points adjacent each other. As shown in FIGURE 4, the wire 16 is extended, so that the nails are spaced apart sufficiently to permit axial driving of each nail without interference from the adjacent nail.

It will be observed that in this embodiment, the wire 16 is secured to the shank of each nail a pre-determined distance from its point. When oriented as shown in FIG- URE 4, the wire 16 will generally define a straight line. It will also be noted in the embodiment of FIGURE 4, that after tipping each of the nails during the feeding process, the wire 16 will be disposed on the same side of all nail shanks.

The precise location of the wire 16 along the shank of the nail is not important. The only limitation is that the wire must be spaced from the head 12 of any given nail by a distance greater than the length of wire between adjacent nails. This will insure that when the wire is broken during the driving operation, the loose ends of the wire will be driven and hence be hidden below the nail head 12. It will of course be understood that the wire can be provided with zones of weakness at pre-determined locations, in order to facilitate separation of individual nails.

It will be apparent that a plurality of nails secured together as described above will form a continuous, flexible strip, adapted to be rolled into a coil as shown in FIGURES 1-3. It will be observed that the top and bottom surfaces of the coiled nail packages are substantially planar.

FIGURES and 6 show another embodiment of the invention wherein the nails are secured together in the side-by-side, parallel relationship by means of the wires 21 and 23. It will be observed that the wires 21 and 23 are each secured to the same side of the shank of any given nail. However, in the embodiment shown, it will be observed that when in the packaged condition, the wires are secured to opposite sides of the shanks of adjacent nails, and are twisted between alternate nails. This particular arrangement has the very desirable characteristic that when such a strip of nails is put under tension,

as by pulling on the endmost nail, the wires will tend to untwist, thereby effecting in some measure the reorientation of individual nails to the driving position shown in FIGURE 6. Of course, when reoriented as shown in FIGURE 6, the wires 21 and 23 will be disposed on the same side of all nail shanks.

It will also be noted in FIGURE 6 that the distance x between the points at which the wires 21 and 23 are secured to any given nail must be slightly less than the distance y between the points at which the wires 21 and 23 are secured to adjacent nails.

This arrangement, like the first described embodiment will provide a nail package in which the shanks of the nails will be very closely adjacent one another while in the package, and yet permit adjacent nails to be separated by a distance sufiicient to permit axial driving of each nail without interference from adjacent nails.

It is believed that the foregoing specification constitutes a full description of the invention. Various modifications and other arrangements can be utilized without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Accordingly, no limitations are intended except insofar as specifically set forth in the claims which follow.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A nail package for use with a nail driving machine comprising:

(a) a plurality of nails arranged in side-by-side relationship with their shanks immediately adjacent one another and lying in substantially parallel planes, points of adjacent nails extending in opposite directions, and

(b) flexible means extending transversely of and secured to the shank of each said nail, said flexible means being secured to opposite sides only of the shanks of adjacent nails, whereby said shanks are sequentially rotatable so that said points of all said nails extend in the same direction.

2. A nail package for use with a nail driving machine comprising:

(a) a plurality of nails arranged in side-by-side relationship with their shanks immediately adjacent one another and lying in substantially parallel planes, points of adjacent nails extending in opposite directions, and

(b) flexible means extending transversely of and secured to the shank of each said nail, said flexible means being movable from an initial position to an extended position as each said nail is sequentially moved from an initial packaged position wherein its shank is immediately adjacent the succeeding nail to a driving position wherein its shank is spaced apart therefrom a suflicient distance to permit axial driving thereof in the direction of its point without interference from the head of the succeeding nail.

3. The nail package claimed in claim 2 wherein said flexible means comprises at least one flexible, frangible wire.

4. The nail package claimed in claim 2 wherein said flexible means comprises two flexible, frangible wires, the distance between the points at which said wires are secured to adjacent nails being greater than the distance between the points at which said wires are secured to the shank of each said nail.

, 5. The nail package claimed in claim 4 wherein said wires are secured to opposite sides of the shanks of adjacent nails and are twisted between alternate nails.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 159,777 2/1875 Sturtevant. 1,046,665 12/1912 Smith.

JOSEPH R. LECLAIR, Primary Examiner J. M. CASKIE, Assistant Examiner 

